Show HN: dialti.me, a US telephone number to timezone converter

#1

Post by benjaminasmith » Mon, Jul 25, 2011, 12:27 PM UTC

This is my one of my first weekend (actually, it took more like a week) mini-projects, and as a long-time reader I thought it would be great to get some feedback from HN.

My aim was to create a tool that I'd find useful while learning something new. In this case, I rediscovered Java, learned about Java servlets and JSON, and I tried out the Google App Engine as a platform.

Feedback, advice or criticism for an aspiring micropreneur? I'd be particularly interested in feedback on the design and concept: are there obvious ways that can I make it more intuitive, more useful or more straightforward?

Show HN: dialti.me, a US telephone number to timezone converter
dialti.me

Re: Show HN: dialti.me, a US telephone number to timezone converter

#2

Post by benjaminasmith » Mon, Jul 25, 2011, 12:50 PM UTC

Long time HN reader, first time poster.

This is my one of my first weekend (it actually took more like a week) side projects.

My aim was to create a tool that I'd find useful while learning something new. In this case, I rediscovered Java, learned about servlets and JSON, and I tried out the Google App Engine as a hosting platform.

Feedback, advice or criticism for an aspiring micropreneur?

I'd be most interested in feedback on the design and execution: what could I do to make this simpler, more intuitive, easier to use?

Re: Show HN: dialti.me, a US telephone number to timezone converter

#3

Post by rachelbythebay » Mon, Jul 25, 2011, 1:13 PM UTC

It seems like all of my friends kept their cell numbers when they moved to the valley. This means you have east coast phone numbers with a west coast human behind it. The three hour difference can be a big deal if someone guesses incorrectly.

I don't know how to help you get better location info given a number alone, unfortunately. Sorry.

Re: Show HN: dialti.me, a US telephone number to timezone converter

#4

Post by benjaminasmith » Mon, Jul 25, 2011, 1:57 PM UTC

rachelbythebay wrote: post #3

It seems like all of my friends kept their cell numbers when they moved to the valley. This means you have east coast phone numbers with a west coast human behind it. The three hour difference can be a big deal if someone guesses incorrectly. I don't know how to help you get better location info given a number alone, unfortunately. Sorry.

Argh - this is a really good point.

I'm from the UK, so I often forget that: a) cell phones have area codes (unlike the UK), b) area codes do not change when cell phones move, and c) there's no way to tell a cell number from a land line number (again, unlike the UK).

Put those three factors together and you're right - the tool becomes far less useful for cell phone numbers.

I'll do a bit more investigation and see if there's a way to improve this situation. Thanks for the input!